Windshield cleaner and heater



Octl 6, J. G. REDsHAw `WINDSH-IELD CLEANER AND HEATER #ad Ocf- 1. 1924Patented Oct. 6, 17925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOSEPH G. BEDSHAW, 0F LYNN, MASSACHUSETTS.

WINDSHIELD CLEANER. .AND HEATER.

Application led October 1, 1924. Serial No. 741,086.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOSEPH G. REDSHAW, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Lynn, in the county of Essex and Com# monwealth ofMassachusetts, have invented anew and useful Improvement in lVindshieldCleaners and Heaters, of which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to windowcleaning devices, and moreparticularly to devices for cleaning or wiping the Windshields ofautomobiles.

Vindshield wipers have now been in use for several years. They operatevery satisfactorily in mild Weather. In cold Weather, however, thefreezing rain, mist, wet snow, and the like, that tend to accumulateupon the windshield are a far more serious obstruction to the drivel-sview than the dirt andthe debris that the windshield wiper is designedto remove. The windshield wiper is Wholly unable to loosen or vremovesuch materials, and it becomes, at such times, unable also to performits ordinary function of removing the dirt obstructions as well. Infact, the wiper tends to stick or freeze to the glass and to becomewholly inoperative.

VVindoW heaters have heretofore been proposed for heating the windows ofhouses or vehicles and the Windshields of automobiles. In the case ofautomobiles, these proposals have met` with failure. The energy that maybe generated or supplied from the power available upon an automobile isvery small, and cannot, therefore, be utilized to heat more than a verysmall portion of the windshield. Such heating means, furthermore, wouldhave to be placed directly in the drivers line ot vision, which wouldobstruct his view, and even then, the heat generated would not be sutilcient to produce a clear view. The use of such heating means alone,moreover, would not serve to clear the windshield ot the dirt and dustthat accumulates so incessantly and that is such a troublesome -factor.

According to the present invention, a small heating unit is provided, 'ncomhination with a. windshield Wiper, the heating unit actin@ to softenor melt the snow or break up the ireezing rain drops sutiiciently toenable the windshield wiper to remove it just as it would any otherview-obstructing deposit.

The invention will now he explained incre at length in connection withthe accompanying drawings, in which Fig. l is a perspective view ot aportion of an automobile, showing a preferred embodiment ot' the presentinvention applied thereto; Fig. 2 is a detail rear view, partly brokenaway, upon a large scale, of a portion of the wind shield shown in Fig.l, with the invention attached thereto; and Fig. 3 is a section takenupon the line 3-3 of Fig. 2, looking in the direction ot the arrows.

The invention is not necessarily limited in its use to automobiles, butan automobile 2 is shown in the drawings for illustrative purposes. Theautomobile 2 is shown equipped with the customary, vertically disposed,windshield 4 upon the upper trame portion 6 of which is mounted awindshield wiper 8 and -a motor 10 for actuating the wiper. In theillustrated embodiment, the motor l() pivotall oscillates the wipershaft l2. The details of construction oit the motor l0 are notillustrated as they do not, of themselves, torni any part ot the presentinvention, and in tact, it is within the scope ot the present inventionto operate the wiper by hand. 'lhe wiper is thus actuated baclr andforth through a comparatively small, restricted area of the windshield,shown in Fig. l as adjacent to the upper, letthand corner, and throughwhich the chaudeur views the road ahead.

.At the upper portion of this restricted area, and above the chauileursline ot' sight, anelectric heating coil 14 is mounte l. This heatingcoil may be wound about an insulator 1G. 'lhe heating coil may, itdesired, be positioned entirely to one sidel ot the insulator le, nent`to the windshield. the better heat 'the windshield. The heating coilmay, in fact, be molded into the glass et the windshield. Thetern'iinals i7 et the coil may be connected by conductors i9 thrcugh aswitch (not shown) to some convenient source of power, such as battery,or the automobile generator. 'lhe heat thus snp plied by heating coil isamply sui'licicnt to heat sutliient portion ot the said restricted areaot' the windshield to a degree such tha reshly deposited snow, or newlyfreezing rain or inist will be sott red or melted. The wiper 8 will beenabled tc push this snow or rain -to one side, and thus preventformation ot obstacles in the dllcl l n order that the heating coil mayniet portion 6, and to this end the motor A10is provided with sideextensions 26 that lap over` the arms 22, as illustrated., A veryconvenient arrangement is thus provided the parts of which operate incombination without interfering with each other in any way.

The invention is not, of course, limited tothe exact details ofconstruction that are illustrated and described herein. Modificationswill readily occur to persons skilled in the art, and all such areconsidered to fall within the spirit and scope of.'y the presentinvention, as defined in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. The combination with a window, of means for heating the window tosoften hardened a ueous matter upon the window, and means orwiping thewindow to easily remove thel softened matter.

2. In an automobile having a power plant and a windshield, thecombination of means for heating* theV windshield to soften hardenedaqueous matter upon the windshield, means connectin the heating means tothe power plant, and means for wiping the windshield to easily removethe softened matter.

3. In an automobile havin a power plant and a windshield, the comination of an electric heater for heating thev windshield to softenhardened aqueous matter upon the windshield, means connected to thepower plant for supplying the heater with electric energy, a mechanicalwiper for wifping the windshield to easil remove the so tened matter,and means or operating the Wiper.

4. In an automobile havin a power plant and a windshield, the comination of an electric heater for heating the windshield to softenhardened aqueous matter upon the windshield, mounted u on the windshieldto 'one side of the line of sight of the chauffeur, means connected tothe power plant for supplying the heater with electric energy, amechanical wiper 4mounted u on the windshield to easily remove the sotened matter, and means for operating the wiper.

5. In an automobile havin a Windshield, means mounted upon one si e ofthe windshield for heating the windshield to soften hardened aqueousmatter upon the windshield, and means mounted u on the other side of thewindshield for wiplngthe windshield to easily remove the softenedmatter.

6. In an automobile having a power plant and a vertically disposedwindshield having an upper frame portion, the combination of an electricheater mounted upon the frame portion upon one side of the windshieldjust above the line of si ht of the chauffeur for heating the windshleldto soften hardened aqueous matter upon the windshield, means connectedto the power plant for supplying the hea-ter with electric energy, amechanical wiper mounted upon the frame ortion upon the other side ofthe windshield3 for wiping the windshield to easily remove the softenedmatter, and a motor for operating the wiper mounted upon the frameportion upon the first-named side of the windshield.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name this 18th dayof September 1924.

JOSEPH G. REDSHAVV.

